<h3>
Answer: 104 square feet</h3>
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Explanation:
The horizontal pieces are the parallel bases
b1 = 17 and b2 = 9
The height is always perpendicular to the base, so h = 8
The 4 ft portion won't be used in the next section, so we can ignore it.
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Plug the values mentioned into the trapezoid area formula below. Simplify.
A = h*(b1+b2)/2
A = 8*(17+9)/2
A = 8*26/2
A = 8*13
A = 104 square feet
We can abbreviate "square feet" into "sq ft" or "ft^2" without quotes.
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As another approach, you can split the trapezoid into 2 triangles and a rectangle in between. Then find the area of each small piece, and add up those smaller areas to get the final answer. You should get 104. If you go with this approach, then you will use the 4 ft portion to help find the horizontal length of the triangle on the right.
